Artoo-Detoo (R2-D2) with pop-up Lightsaber (POTF 1985)

Kenner production team meeting:

Guy 1: Hmm…how can we milk more out of figures we have already made?

Guy 2: What about sparking torso C-3PO?

Guy 3: No – too obvious. How about a Leia in disco suede?

Guy 1: No – too many design changes. How about a new R2?

Guy 2: Yeah, but what hasn’t been done? The third leg?

Guy 1: Oh, we did that in the Droid Factory so not many people could get it. What about a lightsaber that can come out of his head, like in the Tatooine scene?

Guy 3: Yeah, but let’s use an Endor scene photo on the package!

All three: Brilliant!

Alright, so many it didn’t go quite like this, but with a “premium” line like the POTF one, why could there have been a really new figure? Why an R2 with one little feature. Heck, the lightsaber doesn’t even really pop out – it rises as you turn his head. I want a mother----ing saber that shoots out his head right into my Jedi Luke’s hand! Is that so much to ask?

Well, anyway, this R2 comes on a POTF card, making it rarer. It comes with a green lightsaber that rise from his head as you turn it, and is removable. As any POTF figure, it comes with a coin, but inexplicably, it shows a photo – not of R2 shooting out the lightsaber – no, it shows him short-circuiting at the Endor bunker. Go figure.

Why should you get this figure? Five reasons:

1. Maybe you could rig a pen spring in there and make it really shoot.

2. Makes up for Poncho Luke not coming with a lightsaber. Partially.

3. Adds credence to the line, “Is that a lightsaber, or are you just happy to see me?”

4. Gave hope that they would finally get R2 right. Oh, wait – the line just ended.

5. A real coup, since you parents are probably saying, “Don’t you already have one of these?”

Backstory:

The backstory has been covered in my original R2 post, and here is the link to the R2 with sensorscope, and the Droids R2.

Tatooine Skiff (POTF)

If you have one of these, congratulations! If you have one unopened in the box, in pristine condition, congratulations – you can now buy a small used car with it! As I’ve said before on this blog, anything in the POTF line was naturally rarer, since the line was petering out at that point. A larger vehicle from this line is definitely rarer, and the Tatooine Skiff (not to be confused with the mini Desert Sail Skiff) is arguably the rarest vehicle in the original Kenner line.

This thing has everything you could want from the movie. It’s got the steering “wheel.” Movable steering vanes. Retractable landing gear. Levers you can move. And, of course, the gangplank to send the prisoners into the Sarlacc! There are also some cupholders. Okay, maybe they aren’t cupholders, but those six little holes in the middle look like it damnit!

Why should you get this vehicle? Five reasons:

1. What looks cooler in a sandbox: this or a Tonka truck? You be the judge.

2. C’mon – you’ve got to make your figures walk the plank!

3. A nice piece to display your Klaatu, Barada, and Nikto on.

4. And your Weequay.

5. And your Klaatu in Skiff Guard outfit.

Backstory:

The Bantha-II cargo skiff repulsorcraft was built by Ubrikkian Industries as a standard cargo transporter (up to 100 tons), but could be adapted to carry passengers as well. It had the ability to hover up to 50 meters off the ground, and travel up to 250 km/hr. They were very cheap and affordable to even the most backward planets.

Wampa (ESB)

Another in Kenner’s line of monsters-that-tried-to-kill-Luke, the wampa is available by himself. This, in itself, is kind of lame. The wampa is not big, like the rancor. You cannot fit someone in its mouth, like the rancor. He has no accessories – well, neither does the rancor, but you can put someone in its mouth!

The “Wampa Snow Creature from HOTH” (or “Hoth Wampa” on later boxes) came in an ESB box, and featured spring loaded arms that could be pulled back to…swing. Presumably this was to knock Luke off his tauntaun. It sported short,stubby legs, which were neither fear-inspiring or menacing. Due to the many different versions of the wampa prop (they tried stop-motion, a guy in a suit, a puppet, etc) Kenner might not have gotten this exactly right, and it may be more of a hybrid of body parts.

Why should you get this creature? Five reasons:

1. You’ve got the tauntaun. You’ve got Hoth Luke. Now get yourself a freakin’ wampa!

2. No one scars Luke like a wampa.

3. Your tauntaun numbers are getting out of hand. A predator helps control the population.

4. Best catcher on the baseball team. Look at those mitts!

5. Those dreamy vacant eyes.

Background:

Wampas were indigenous to Hoth, and fed mainly on tauntauns, but would eat other creatures as well. Mainly solitary hunters, they would only eat when hungry, but hunt and store prey in their cave (like Luke) for later consumption. Echo Base came under many attacks by these creatures, and there was even a deleted scene from ESB where C-3PO rips a warning sign off a wampa room, and some unaware snowtroopers run into it.

MTV-7 (ESB)

MTV, eh? The release of the MTV-7 was in 1981. MTV the network started August 1, 1981. Coincidence? Who copied who? The world may never know, but I do know this: the MTV-7 has as much relevance to music as the other MTV does today. Go ahead – try to find a video on there.

MTV stands for “multi-terrain vehicle.” Pretty generic, but it is a nifty little mini-rig from ESB. It is a one-man (or woman – sorry Leia) cockpit with a rotating blaster on the front, two roller wheels and springs that allow you to lower and raise the cockpit in relation to the ground. If you pushed it down and let go fast you could make it jump a little bit.

Realistically, the “tires” would be pretty crappy on real snow and ice, but it’s a toy so I’ll let that slide. It was a cute little vehicle (yeah, you want all your Star Wars toys to be cute) and cheap, so enjoy!

Why should you buy this vehicle? Five reasons:

1. Cheap mini-rig – extra vehicles for you to play with.

2. The closest SW vehicle to a monster truck. Enjoy , redneck scifi fans!

3. Give a snowtrooper a break – this is the only vehicle they let him drive.

4. The only SW vehicle that can do push-ups.

5. One of the SW vehicles you’ll let your younger siblings use (you keep the good ones hidden).

Backstory:

Not in any of the movies, but wholly created by Kenner, the MTV-7 does show up in some of the material written about Blizzard Force, an elite Imperial cold-climate squad.